Restaurant job losses were up at least 163% in 2020

We all know 2020 was a bit of a rubbish year. However, spare a thought for those in the restaurant business, as job losses within their industry rose by at least 163% last year, according to a new report by the Centre for Retail Research (CRR).

Not only were restaurant industry job losses up - with almost 30,000 reported to the CRR - but also restaurant closures, which increased by 76% from 922 to 1,621 over the course of 2020.

Casual dining establishments such as Pizza Express and Bella Italia saw a massive reduction in footfall.

Casual dining establishments such as Pizza Express and Bella Italia saw a massive reduction in footfall.

The CRR chose to focus on casual dining closures as one of the main causes of such eye-wateringly-high figures, such as Pizza Express, Cafe Rouge, Bella Italia, etc. With casual, spur-of-the-moment dining down to a record low, it made a massive impact on the footfall of these businesses, forcing closures.

It wasn't just the lack of footfall that caused this, however. These chains (and many more like them) over-expanded their businesses during a boom in trade, which coupled with private equity debt, caused a 'bubble' which simply needed to be popped (by the pandemic) to come crashing down.

Things may get worse in 2021 before they get better.

Things may get worse in 2021 before they get better.

The hospitality industry as a whole suffered massively, with 297,000 jobs reported as lost to the CRR across the accommodation and foodservice industries, with many more thought to have gone unreported.

Without some kind of further rent deals for restauranteurs, along with ways to adapt their businesses to stay open in some capacity (e.g takeaway services) things may get even worse during the first part of 2021.

If you can, support your local restaurants this year - it may make all the difference.